Free Erica Lucke Dean - To Katie with Love by Erica Lucke Dean Page B

tasted the peppermint. “You always taste so good, like you’ve just brushed your teeth or something.”
    He laughed but didn’t explain. “Will you please show me where you live?”
    “Right now ?” My heart began to race at the thought of him seeing my townhouse and the messy state it was in.
    As if sensing my discomfort, he kissed the tip of my nose. “We don’t have to go in. I just want to know where you live. And—” He paused to kiss my lips. “—you can drive your own car there so I can take you home tonight. Like a real date.”
    A real date. Was that all he wanted? It was kind of romantic in a way. I nodded and melted into his arms as he kissed me again. We sat in the bank parking lot kissing for a few more minutes before I remembered Phil was probably watching from the lobby. I was too happy to be embarrassed, but I broke off the kiss and slid back into my own seat. It had gotten dark while we sat, oblivious to anything but each other.
    “Ready?”
    I cleared my throat and nodded again. “Ready.”
    He got out and opened my door for me, then walked me to my car. I climbed behind the wheel of my Prius and pulled out of the bank parking lot with Cooper following. When we reached my townhouse, I parked and got back into his BMW.
    I spent a few minutes describing the interior of my little home—as if it were actually clean. “I never got around to painting the walls, so they’re all the same boring white they were when I moved in a year ago. The most interesting things about the whole place are the gleaming wood floors and the brick fireplace. Though I’m not sure if the fireplace works; I’ve never had a reason to use it.”
    He didn’t seem at all bored as I went on about my stack of paperbacks and love of reading. He even sounded interested in my favorite authors, but I wasn’t sure if he was just being polite.
    “Okay, are you ready for the evening I have planned?” His smile threatened to split his face in two.
    I couldn’t imagine what he’d planned, but I was certain I was noteven close to being ready for it. “I hope so.”
    The long cobblestone driveway, lined with dormant crepe myrtles dressed in white lights, hinted at what lay beyond. Cooper’s house was sequestered behind a grove of old, twisted walnut trees. I wasn’t sure what we were doing there, but when we pulled in, I realized it was the first time I could actually recall seeing the front of his house. It was magnificent… a European-style country manor in aged bricks and stone.
    “Stay here,” he said. Then he ducked down to quickly press his lips to mine in an all-too-quick kiss. “Don’t move.”
    I felt as though I were returning to the scene of a crime. My only relief came from the fact that he didn’t come around and open my door. Maybe he forgot his wallet. He disappeared through the heavy wooden front door and was gone for what seemed like an eternity but was really only a minute or two. When he came back out, he seemed nervous, as if he was holding back some sort of secret he wasn’t sure I would like. He sauntered over to the car, opened my door, and offered his hand.
    I automatically took it, but I was instantly terrified and fought to keep the hysteria from my voice. “Are we having dinner here?” I was prepared for a crowded restaurant, even an intimate one, but definitely somewhere with people. Not his house. Not completely alone. I wouldn’t have the excuse of being drunk. I wouldn’t have the gut-wrenching vomiting to save me from myself.
    He froze. “Would you rather not eat here?”
    I felt his anxiety. One word of rejection, and I would shatter him. I was sure of it. I forced a smile. “No, this is fine. I’m just surprised. I didn’t know you could cook.”
    “I didn’t cook. I hired a good caterer.” He pulled me against him, wrapping his arm around my waist, and led me through the front door.
    “Okay, now I don’t want you to jump to any conclusions.” He closed the door behind us.